The End of Fall - Janet Watkins
Connecting With Nature
November is my favorite month! Our senses become alive with the last month of fall, sweaters once again unpacked in preparation of the impending cold, the aroma of soup and chili cooking and the nourishment it offers the body and the vibrant images of the changing colors of the leaves natures offers us, like one last hooray as we begin to move inwards for the winter.
Some may not be thrilled with the winter season, the cold, snow, shorter days, ice and did I mention the cold. Truth is, winter is not only good for us but also a much-needed time. Winter is a time of silence and stillness in nature. The shorter days and lower temperatures are needed for plants to become dormant. This way plants can store up energy for new growth. Fruit trees that do not have enough chilling time will produce few and weaker buds in the spring. It is the same for us humans.
Cultivating Silence & Stillness Underneath the Noise and Movement!
This month offers us a time to prepare for less activity, although it may not seem that way as we move towards the holiday season, but who says we have to be so busy. November is the month of the final harvest, the culmination of everything we do all year. The winter months is where we prepare for spring, what seeds to plant, preparing and fertilizing the soil.
Silence and stillness are so important for our overall well-being. It decreases the number of stimuli that our nervous systems need to process; it allows us to be receptive to our intuitive wisdom. It just plain gives us a break from the busy-ness of life allowing us to prepare and fertilize the soil for the next season.
If you can this month, take some moments for yourself; even if it’s just a minute here and 30 seconds there.
* Take one thing that you already do, slow it
down for 10-30 seconds, and use those
seconds to just enjoy what you’re doing.
* Shampoo your hair and take 10 seconds to
give your scalp a mini-massage.
* Before starting your car, sit there quietly and
feel love in your heart.
* After you turn out the light at bedtime, spend
10 seconds acknowledging something good
that happened that day.
Over time, perhaps extend the 10 seconds to 15, then 20, then even longer; but start with what you can do easily.
Few of us need *more* things to do. Most of us need *fewer* things to do. So, build self-care into your already-busy schedule by simply slowing down a task that you do every day and taking those few short moments to just enjoy it.
